Cody Rhodes and the Young Bucks Are Throwing an Indie Wrestling Megashow in Chicago

Cody Rhodes and the Young Bucks have been hyping their indie wrestling megashow All In for months now, and as of last night we finally know where it’s going to happen. Okay, well, we’ve kind of known for weeks now, as it was one of the biggest open secrets in wrestling, but now it’s officially confirmed. All In will be happening in the Chicago area at the Sears Centre Arena in Hoffman Estates, Illinois, on Sept. 1, 2018. Yep, it’s over Labor Day weekend.

The news was announced by Arrow’s Stephen Amell in an episode of Being the Elite that went live late last night, right after the WWE show Raw went off the air. Here’s that video:

That post-Raw timing was obviously no coincidence. Cody, the Bucks and the rest of their Bullet Club brethren have been needling the biggest promotion in wrestling for months, winning over a legion of hardcore wrestling fans in the process. The whole All In show exists to prove that America’s top independent wrestlers can put on a show that draws 10000 fans, a number that WWE struggles to reach outside of its biggest markets and major shows. A show that grew out of a Rhodes response to a Dave Meltzer tweet (see below) will now be taking place at a 10000-plus-seat basketball and hockey arena in suburban Chicago, an always-thriving market for wrestling where WWE regularly draws over 10000 customers for TV tapings.

No card has been announced yet, but we know a few wrestlers who will be appearing. Obviously the Young Bucks, perhaps the most popular act on the American indies today, and Cody Rhodes, a big name star who has successfully proven he can thrive outside the WWE system, will be there. Kenny Omega, who’s a huge star in Japan and the biggest wrestling star in America who isn’t currently with WWE, will also be there, perhaps fighting against his (former?) Bullet Club friends. Fellow Bullet Club members Marty Scurll and Hangman Page have also been announced for the event, along with Amell and second generation woman wrestler Tessa Blanchard. Expect a number of Ring of Honor and independent stars to round out the show, perhaps with appearances by some of New Japan’s major stars. And hey, now that Chicago is definitely the place, what could be a better time for a certain former WWE World Heavyweight champion who regularly called himself “the best in the world” to make his return to pro wrestling?

We’ll know more about the show as it grows closer. The All In braintrust are locked into a slow drip of announcements, smartly wringing every bit of promotional juice out of every new update. That alone should shut up all those arguments that the Young Bucks don’t know how to work.